Plot Summary: After his home is conquered by the tyrannical emperors who now lead Rome, Lucius is forced to enter the Colosseum and must look to his past to find strength to return the glory of Rome to its people.

Director: Ridley Scott

Writers: David Franzoni, Peter Craig, David Scarpa

Runtime: 2 hours 28 mins

• Paul Mescal as Lucius
• Denzel Washington as Macrinus
• Pedro Pascal as General Acacius
• Connie Nielsen as Lucilla
• Joseph Quinn as Emperor Geta
• Peter Mensah as Jugurtha
• Rory McCann as General Tegula

Review by: Samuel

What I Liked

For his part Paul Mescal LOOKS the part. He definitely put in the work to look like a true gladiator of the Roman Colosseum.  The set pieces also look fantastic for the most part. The battles- both in and out of the arena are big in scale, you can see the heavy amount of production that was put into each scene,  and the city of Rome does feel like a character itself as it’s filled with life and we are treated to wide angle shots to demonstrate just how sprawling the capital city of the empire was. 

I also believe Denzel Washington was having the most fun he’s had in a while on screen as his character Macrinus is easily the best on screen. He is conniving, calculating and maniacal all at once. He is a Roman citizen (one who buys and trains gladiators) trying to rise above his station, and his ambition fuels one of the film’s more interesting storylines. Put simply, every time Denzel is on screen, the movie is improved. 

What I Didn’t Like:

There’s a lot. Being honest, overall this movie did not work for me at all. If you want the BLUT: terrible CGI, convoluted plot, uninteresting characters, sub-par action, illogical decisions made by character’s which points to either a bad script or a cut film, and numerous references to its far superior predecessor. 

This is a movie that was made as an afterthought and not planned. Yes, we knew that but it’s so obvious in the way the film adds things not in the original to manufacture a plot that we, the audience, can accept as plausible. By far the biggest sin this movie commits is the countless references to the first-  not just because it’s nostalgia bait, but also because it’s a constant reminder of just how much BETTER the original is in every aspect. Our main character Lucius (Mescal) has no charisma or charm that would lead you to believe he can inspire men on screen; and if you don’t believe he’s inspiring them, then he won’t inspire you. He’s not a poor man’s Maximus, he’s a destitute man’s Maximus. 

The movie gives a (bad) reason as to why he’s so quiet and distant, and therefore not relatable or charming, but the problem is there isn’t enough time to develop that reason so he just seems like an uninteresting man. Why isn’t there enough time to develop? Because the movie has 3 plots running at the same time, doesn’t balance them well which results in two being half baked, and one just outright terrible. You have the half-baked plot of Lucius going beat for beat down the same path as Maximus in the original. That is, losing a loved one, being sold into slavery, gaining a reputation in the arena, and inspiring an army to fight. This ends up being rushed/underdeveloped and makes tons of illogical leaps to reach its end. 

You have the half-baked plot of Macrinus trying to use Lucius to improve his standing with the emperors and Sente. This ends up being rushed/underdeveloped and makes tons of illogical leaps to reach its end. And finally, you have Pedro Pascal as a Roman general secretly working with Lucilla and others from the original to finish the work of Marcus Aurelius. This ends up being rushed/underdeveloped…..but I can’t say it takes illogical leaps because it’s so boring that I forget it. 

Even if you could get past the plot and character deficiencies because you just want a good action film, you won’t be impressed  because the action is pretty basic- and again falls short of it’s 24 year old predecessor. Sword battles have boring choreography, stadium battles are epic but wrap up in minutes, and the CGI used belongs on a PS3.  

The last thing I’ll get on is the utter silliness of this movie. The twin emperors may be meant to come off as eccentric, but it goes to far. One scene in particular with them and Denzel and an impossible to believe beheading had me throwing my hands in the air at the foolishness I was witnessing. Denzel himself has scenes where he acts in ways that seems like it was meant for the blooper wheel. Too many characters have sudden changes of heart in which hate turns to love and hesitance turns to trust in one scene. I think there’s a longer cut of the film that adds depth and believability to some of the actions taken and dialogue spoken, but as it stands the theatrical release is kind of ridiculous. 

Images Courtesy of IMDB